The Conversation
FILM 11.15PM, BBC2
Not only one of the greatest thrillers ever made but also an exemplary character study, this is film-maker Francis Ford Coppola at his quiet best. One of Coppola’s lesser-known masterpieces (made between the first two Godfather films), it enters the world of sad, secretive Harry Caul (a stunning turn by Gene Hackman), a surveillance man who, during a job, intrudes on a young couple’s conversation, from which it sounds as if they are about to be murdered. But Harry is often mistaken about things… A dazzling film. ★★★★★ NP